Domino’s Avoid the Noid is possibly the worst ad campaign ever
Domino’s in the 80’s were keen to jump on the mascot bandwagon. McDonalds had Ronald, KFC had the Colonel and Burger King had…. well the Burger King.
In 1986, Domino’s debuted the “Noid”. Dressed in a red suit with rabbit ears, he tried to make deliveries late, thus getting them for free if they took more than 30 minutes to arrive. Of course, he was never successful.
1989 Avoid the Noid Commercial
Domino’s invested so much into the character that he had a Saturday morning cartoon series planned and a game that was released in 1989 called, you guessed it, Avoid the Noid.
Then it all fell apart. There’s a reason you’ve never heard of the Noid. It’s the same reason why “Avoid the Noid” might be the worst ad campaign ever.
That reason is a mentally ill man called Kenneth Lamar Noid.
January 30th 1989
Kenneth Noid enters a Domino’s restaurant in Chamblee, Georgia. He is armed and very pissed off. Kenneth thinks that Domino’s has been mocking him with their “Avoid the Noid” commercials and he wants retribution.
So he takes two employees hostage.
Kenneth forces the employees to call their head office and demand $100,000 and a white limo as an escape vehicle. He believes he is owed this after they “stole his name”.
During the five hour stand off, Kenneth forces the employees to make him pizza, which he then sits down to eat. During this time, the hostages escape. Leaving Kenneth with no leverage. He surrenders soon after.
Charged with multiple crimes, Kenneth is eventually found not guilty by reason of insanity. Kenneth was committed to a mental institution but sadly, he killed himself in 1995.
Fallout from Avoid the Noid
Domino’s has always denied that the Noid was cancelled due to this incident. But he makes no more appearances in their advertising until a limited t-shirt run in 2009. All those millions spent on advertising and brand marketing gone. Really, it had to be Kenneth Noid that caused them to stop using their mascot.
Ultimately, that’s what makes this the worst ad campaign ever. Two employees traumatised, one mentally ill man dead and millions lost in advertising. All because of the name you gave to your mascot.
Oh, and the Noid ended up winning.
Remember, the Noid was all about getting a free pizza. Kenneth had the employees cook his pizza, which he then sat and ate (without paying for) before he gave himself up.